Pesticide information mandated: a California initiative focuses on keeping farmworkers better informed when pesticides are used in their vicinity, though stats show ag gets a bad rap

摘要

The California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) has embarked on a farmworker "right-to-know" initiative aimed at preventing pesticide injuries in the field. Regulations under development would require prompt communication between pesticide applicators and growers to help reduce the risk that workers may enter an area too soon after pesticides have been applied. DPR will review the proposals with ag organizations, worker advocacy groups, and the U.S. EPA before formal regulations take effectin 2004. DPR made the announcement at the same time it released a summary for all pesticide illness data for 2001. The agency investigated 979 suspected pesticide illnesses in 2001, a decrease of 165 (14 percent) from 2000, when 1144 cases were investigated. Pesticides were found to be at least a possible factor in 616 (63 percent) of the cases. Of those, just 192 (31 percent) involved the use of pesticides in agriculture, while 424 (69 percent) occurred in other settings. However, DPR's own studies show ag-related injuries are more likely to be reported than those that occur at home, indicating the percentage of ag-related incidents is no-doubt inflated. The data is available online at www.cdpr.ca.gov/docs/whs/pdf/hs1843.pdf.